Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1887-05-12
THE DOUBLE MURDER.
Continued from First Page.1

! of the wounds would have produced death.
| I found no other marks of violence upon
her body. She had on the same clothing
as Mrs. McWha, with the addition
of kind of jacket. / saw
tub, half full of water, containing two
pairs of stockings, two dresses, and some
bandkerchiefs. There were a set of teeth
in the pocket of one of the dresses. Judg-
ing from the condition of the bodies,
think they had been dead twenty -four
hours from the time l saw them, which
was Lot later than 3p. m. Think the muir
der was committed in the daytime. There
was coupling pin, an axe, and an iron bolt
in the tub with the clothing. The water
| in the tub was bloody. The clothing was
all blood stained. The women were never
murdered in the clothing they had on.
| All the clothing in the tub were turned
inside out, as though they bad been taken
off in n hurry. l think one Of the women
was killed in the kitchen, and the other in
the room. believe the elder woman was
killed first, and the younger woman was
laid on her. The bodies lay in unnatural
positions; living persons could not have
| placed their arms in the positions found
them. Ny reasons for believing the per-
sons were killed in seperate rooms arise
| from the blood marks upon the floor; there
had evidently ben body lying in each
of these pools. think the bed had not
been slept in that night"
DIR. Z. j. OwINGs.
DR.. E. J. 0wings was the next witness.
He was not now practicing physician.
| He said his observations led him to agree,
substantially, with the first witness.
DAVID HALE.
Immediately after the noon recess
David Hale was put on the stand He
first saw the dead bodies shortly after nine
o'clock Tuesday evening. The bodies
were lying on the floor of the sitting room,
one of the women lying across the other
Witness heard cries Of murder" from
| Mr.. Baker, and ran to the house. Wit
ness described the clothing of the dead
women, as previously stated. Witness
did not notice the condition of the shut
tiers, as his stay at the house was short
one Herman Campbell preceded witness
into the house. Mr.. Baker was there
Witness saw Mr.. Baker Monday morning
He was dressed in dark clOthes-he would
not say whether they were blue or black.
Witness saw Thomas Gardner near Baker 5
not later than three o'clock Tuesday.
HERMAN CAMPBELL.
Witness was at Bakers house Tuesday
morning. Mr.. Baker came out and called
to him. It was between and 8 o'clock.
Witness said Mr.. Baker got off the cars
with him Tuesday morning. Witness got
on the train at Golfers, and Baker was
on the cars then. They both got off at
Goal Station" and witness walked to the
postoffice with him. Baker had a small
satchel. Baker stopped at the postOilice,
but caught up to and passed witness on the
road down. There was nothing unusual
in Bakers manner. In the house witness
saw an axe in tub of water. Baker was
'going on" terribly. Witness met Baker
at the edge of the hill, in front of the
house, and walked up the hill to the house
with him. He did not recOllect that Mr..
Baker said anything to him. Baker hal
! lowed murder" when he first saw wit
ness, but made no mention of what had
happened. He was merely making Il
fuss" Baker said something to witness
and Mr.. Hale when they went into the
hOese, but witness could not recall its i'm
port.
MRS. LUCY SWEARINGEN.
Witness stated that on Monday last
about half-past two, she had called ut
Bakers. She rang the door bell twice
waited few minutes, and then went TO the
! kitchen door. The blinds were all down,
Just as they are to-day. She came around
the west end of the house. The sitting
room shutters were open. She went to the
kitchen door, next the pump, and turned
the knob and pushed the door open, but it
was ut once pushed shut from the inside.
| She opened the door about six inches.
| Witness said: Eliza, it's me; let me in. #"
| There was no response, and witness went
right back to the front of the house. Wit
ness did not look in the kitchen door
when she pushed it aiar. Mrs. William
| Brown was with witness. She remained
on the porch while witness went around to
| the back of the house. 1t was little after
three O'Clock when witness got back to Mr..
Browns house Witness saw Mr.. Baker
at his gate Tuesday morning She told
| him to tell his wife she had called. lie
said the women must have been in the
orchard. Witness noticed the washing on
the line when she called Monday. When
witness saw Mr.. Baker Tuesday, he did
not invite us TO 90 up and see his wife.
He was then on his way home from the
cars.
To Mr.. RiChards-The kitchen door was
closed with a sudden push, my hand being
still on the knob. | heard no noise in the
house. Tuesday Mr.. Baker asked me who
he should tell his wife had called. 1t was
about o'clock.
VAN. b. BAKER.
Mvname is Van. Il. Baker. | reside in
Holidays Cove, in the house owned by
Mrs. Druscilla McWha. Last Monday
morning ] was ut home at an early hour. |
was at the house until some time after
breakfast. then went to the postOllice,
about $50. got back to the house about
o'clock. Most of the time up to noon
was about the house. think once or
twice l went down to where the railroad
men were cutting trees. When | came back
| to the house, near noon, my wife and Mrs.
| McWha were talking to three men at the
stable. | was at the house and around the
premises up to twenty minutes after three,
when started for the train. think lett
! the house to 90 TO the rail-
road about twenty minutes after
three. got to the station
about fifteen minutes before the train came
The men negotiating with Mrs. McWha
wrote their names VIM. DaviSSon, VIM.
Watson or Nelson, and White. They
rented the stable They completed their
contract about 1890 by my time. The
men said they had to go to Steubenville for
their horses, and it might be late when
they got back. | directed them how to
get into the stable in case they found the
door fastened. The men are occupying
| the stable now. Mrs. McWha, my wife
and agreed to the terms in the house. and
Mrs McWha signed the paper in the sit
ting room. The men were at the end of
the hall, in the yard. Monday
morning | was dressed partly
rs am at present Part of the time was
in my shirt sleeves, and part of the time
mad on the same clothes rs at present, eX-
cept that had on a blue coat did not
have pair of blue pants on that morning.
| have blue suit complete. | haven't
| worn the DantS eNcent for . day or two this